Solomon Builds the Temple

1Now Solomon began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where [a]the Lord had appeared to his father David, at the place that David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan[b] the Jebusite. 2And he began to build on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign.

3This is the foundation which Solomon laid for building the house of God: The length was sixty cubits (by cubits according to the former measure) and the width twenty cubits. 4And the vestibule that was in front of [c]the sanctuary was twenty cubits long across the width of the house, and the height was [d]one hundred and twenty. He overlaid the inside with pure gold. 5The larger [e]room he paneled with cypress which he overlaid with fine gold, and he carved palm trees and chainwork on it. 6And he decorated the house with precious stones for beauty, and the gold was gold from Parvaim. 7He also overlaid the house—the beams and doorposts, its walls and doors—with gold; and he carved cherubim on the walls.

8And he made the Most Holy Place. Its length was according to the width of the house, twenty cubits, and its width twenty cubits. He overlaid it with six hundred talents of fine gold. 9The weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold; and he overlaid the upper area with gold. 10In the Most Holy Place he made two cherubim, fashioned by carving, and overlaid them with gold. 11The wings of the cherubim were twenty cubits in overall length: one wing of the one cherub was five cubits, touching the wall of the room, and the other wing was five cubits, touching the wing of the other cherub; 12one wing of the other cherub was five cubits, touching the wall of the room, and the other wing also was five cubits, touching the wing of the other cherub. 13The wings of these cherubim spanned twenty cubits overall. They stood on their feet, and they faced inward. 14And he made the veil of blue, purple, crimson, and fine linen, and wove cherubim into it.

15Also he made in front of the [f]temple two pillars [g]thirty-five cubits [h]high, and the capital that was on the top of each of them was five cubits. 16He made wreaths of chainwork, as in the inner sanctuary, and put them on top of the pillars; and he made one hundred pomegranates, and put them on the wreaths of chainwork. 17Then he set up the pillars before the temple, one on the right hand and the other on the left; he called the name of the one on the right hand [i]Jachin, and the name of the one on the left [j]Boaz.